Gone Missing (2013)

Instant Favorite.

The performances transcend the film's tropes, grounding it in characters that feel more complete than this subgenre often produces.

Blending excellent reporting and strong storytelling, this is a disturbing film truly stranger than fiction

I enjoyed watching this film and would recommend other to give it a try , (as I am) but this movie, although enjoyable to watch due to the better than average acting fails to add anything new to its storyline that is all too familiar to these types of movies.

I have to say that this has to be one of the better TV movies on offer. Not only does it have a good storyline, which is both plot and character driven, but it has a really good cast and is very well directed.The story is set around the disappearance of Kaitlin (Davidovici) and her friend Matty (Golightly) while on a family supervised Spring Break. The story is set in real time but we get flashbacks which tell the tale of the vanishing girls, through the eyes of the witnesses who met them that night. I'm not a fan of "the flashback", however, the director Miele handles them brilliantly and interweaves them into the story effortlessly. Though what makes this such a good story and film is the characterisations of the mothers. Rene (Zuniga) is Kaitlin's mum and is constantly looking over her daughter's shoulder to make sure that she is safe and well. This can result in her being overcontrolling at times. As a result, she's the one who worries the most and at the earliest opportunity. Whereas Lisa (Bowles) is a little bit freer with her daughter, she's the one that buys her condoms - her thought system is that you cannot look out for your kids all the time, but you can try and keep them safe. So when the girls go missing she's not too overly worried as she believes they've just been out partying all night. She remembers what it was like to be eighteen and on spring break. These two different characters work well off of each other. The two women have been friends since high school, though this night is going to test their friendship to its limit.The next good thing is the story. This is well written and is filled with believable characters and authentic situations and narrative. There are a couple of scene's which are a little hard to swallow as you can't fully believe them - but it is a couple, so they are easily overlooked. What really helps this film is the fact that as the story progresses and unfolds you never really find out the complete tale until the climax of the movie. This is a great thing as it keeps the viewers glued to the screens with anticipation.As for the actors and actresses, I cannot fault them at all. They each give a realistic portrayal of their characters.I would gladly recommend this film to everybody who likes thrillers and mysteries as it's packed with both.

This is a better than usual Lifetime movie. Two 18 year old girls travel for Spring Break to San Diego accompanied by their mothers, one protective and one lax. From the title you can gather the girls go missing.The dialog is well written. The way people react is realistic and not melodramatic especially the irresponsible mother and daughter. It's a warning for youngsters about choices about drinking, bad boys, befriending strangers and parenting styles. It's a less tragic more common story than what happened to Natalie Holloway and has some useful lessons without being preachy.Daphne Zuniga gives a believable performance and along with Marcia Cross she is one of the better actresses to have emerged from Melrose Place. Liked that she has aged naturally. The actresses who played the girls are quite good too even if you want to give them a slap.Worth watching.

I was not expecting a masterpiece of a film, but it is completely obvious that research was not done before executing this film. Does anyone on the production or writing team know how missing persons cases are handled (aside from being aware that missing persons reports cannot be filed within 48 hours of the person being missing)? As a previous hotel manager, I was appalled at the way the involvement of the hotel security was handled. Generally a guest would not escort a security guard to another guest's room. A hotel guest would never be allowed to review camera footage alongside the security firsthand. Next, the fact that police then became involved, they would not have included the mom in the investigation and interrogation process. This made the film difficult to watch. Getting past these discrepancies, I was extremely annoyed that Lisa (Matty's mom) never really seemed to see the error of her ways. Did she feel it wasn't important to provide some kind of guidance to her daughter ever? Could she not see how her lack of parenting could have caused her daughter's murder or her friend's murder? Despite the acting efforts, this film was not well written or thought out.

The writers and director have the actors looking west from California to take photographs of a sunrise. I don't think you can do this. I believe the script says the location is Coronado, CA. Is "Pacific Point" a real place? What am I missing here? As long as I've been alive the sun has risen in the east. The actors have given credible performances. The story line is flabby and, aside from a harrowing experience for Mom, the dialogue, photography and character development are uninspiring. I'm not sure what the theme is in this movie. If it is a warning to young people to behave better and use the brains their parents gave them when it comes drugs, alcohol and avoiding handsome guys with no morals, they could probably do better spending Saturday nights for a couple of months observing what goes on in the emergency room of the hospital where I used to work.